The Future of Consumerist

Over the last twelve years, Consumerist has been a steadfast proponent and voice on behalf of consumers, from exposing shady practices by secretive cable companies to pushing for action against dodgy payday lenders. Now, we’re joining forces with Consumer Reports, our parent organization, to cultivate the next generation of consumer advocacy.

Stay tuned as Consumerist’s current and future content finds its home as a part of the Consumer Reports brand. In the meantime, you can access existing Consumerist content below, and we encourage you to visit Consumer Reports to read the latest consumer news.

Following a trend set by Macy’s, Wet Seal, The Limited, and others, mall mainstay BCBG Max Azria plans to close 120 stores at shopping centers around the country, and may file for bankruptcy protection.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that the high-end women’s apparel and accessories retailer will close 120 stores that are either unprofitable or have untenable lease agreements in coming weeks with some locations already hosting close-out sales.

The closing stores include the company’s BCBGMaxazria and BCBGGeneration locations, but not the retailer’s store-within-a-store concept housed in various Macy’s department stores.

A rep for the California-based company tells the Star Tribune that the closing stores represent less than a third of the chain’s U.S. Stores. However, it’s unclear how many stores the retailer operates in total. Bloomberg, which previously reported on unspecified closing, notes that there were once more than 570 BCBG branded stores in the world, including about 175 in the U.S.

“In order to remain viable, the company, like so many others in its industry, must realign its business to effectively compete in today’s shopping environment,” the company said.

The sources say that the company is evaluating its options as it tries to restructure debts, including laying off more than 123 employees last year. A rep for BCBG Max Azria Group declined to provide comment to WWD on the bankruptcy rumors.

Consumerist has reached out to BCBG for more information on the closings and potential bankruptcy plan. We’ll update this post when we hear back.